A Metropolitan Police sergeant who was secretly filmed saying a detainee “deserves to be beaten up” has been sacked.
The footage, which was aired in a BBC Panorama documentary, showed Sergeant Lawrence Hume calling a detainee a “prick”, a misconduct hearing in south London was told on Friday.
Speaking to an undercover journalist, Sergeant Lawrence Hume said of the detainee: “I wanted to say he’s a prick, he deserves to be beaten up, but yeah, it’s all recorded.”
In the six-minute clip, which was played to the panel several times, Sergeant Hume goes on to say of the same detainee, “charge him, send him to prison, throw away the key”, adding, “don’t care, deserves to be beaten up don’t he”.
The footage then shows the undercover journalist recalling an exchange he had with Sergeant Joe McIlvenny regarding the use of force on a separate detainee.
The journalist says he told Sergeant McIlvenny he had witnessed him giving a “little dig” to the individual and that the sergeant had warned him to “be careful” as there were cameras in the custody suite, to which Sergeant Hume replies, “yeah, you have to watch out mate.”
Panel chairman Commander Jason Prins found Sergeant Humes’s behaviour amounted to gross misconduct and he was dismissed without notice.
Mr Prins said the sergeant was “unable to provide a satisfying answer” as to why he had said a detainee deserved to be “beaten up”.
“He made the comments on two occasions unprompted,” Mr Prins added.
“He was in a leadership position responsible for the welfare of detainees.”
Cecily White, for the appropriate authority, told the panel that even if the comments had not been broadcast, they were capable of damaging public confidence in the force.
Giving evidence, Sergeant Hume, who was based at Charing Cross police station, said of the footage: “I was just, I think, frustrated from the non-compliant detainee we just dealt with who tried to spit at one of my colleagues.
“I would never say that if the public could see that at all.”
“He’s just tried to assault one of my colleagues,” he added.
“I would no way endorse a detainee to be beaten up,” the sergeant said.
An allegation that Sergeant Hume’s comments indicated a clear intention to minimise and not record levels of force used in custody was found not proven.
A further allegation that, after being informed of Sergeant McIlvenny’s remarks, he failed to challenge or report this was also found not proven.
He is the sixth police officer who has been sacked following the BBC investigation.
Last month, Sergeant Clayton Robinson, Pc Jason Sinclair-Birt, Pc Philip Neilson, Pc Martin Borg and Sergeant McIlvenny were dismissed without notice in separate hearings after it was found they had committed gross misconduct.
Amanda Rowe, director at the police watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct, said: “PS Hume’s comments were unacceptable and completely unprofessional.
“A panel has found that the officer breached the police standards of professional behaviour relating to authority, respect and courtesy, and discreditable conduct, and it’s right that he has been dismissed from the force.”
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